Website Subdomain — Choosing & Changing Your URL
How your BookAuth subdomain works, how to choose a good one, and how to change it if needed.
Your BookAuth author website URL follows the pattern yourname.bookauth.com. This subdomain is derived from your author slug and serves as your website's address until you connect a custom domain (Business plan).
What You'll Learn
- How your subdomain is generated
- How to choose an effective subdomain
- How to change your subdomain
- Impact of subdomain changes
How Your Subdomain Works
When you create your author profile, BookAuth generates a subdomain based on your display name:
| Display Name | Generated Subdomain |
|---|---|
| Sarah Mitchell | sarahmitchell.bookauth.com |
| J.K. Writer | jkwriter.bookauth.com |
| Maria de la Cruz | mariadelacruz.bookauth.com |
The subdomain:
- Is all lowercase
- Has spaces and special characters removed
- Must be unique across BookAuth
Choosing a Good Subdomain
Best Practices
- Use your author name — most professional and discoverable
- Match your pen name — if you write under a pen name, use that
- Keep it short — easier to share and remember
- Avoid numbers and hyphens —
sarahmitchellis better thansarah-mitchell-2
If Your Name Is Taken
- Try adding your middle initial:
sarahjmitchell - Use your pen name or writing alias
- Add "author" or "books":
sarahmitchellbooks
Changing Your Subdomain
- Navigate to Website > Domain (or Settings > Profile)
- Find the "Subdomain" or "Author Slug" field
- Enter your desired new subdomain
- Check availability
- Click "Save"
Impact of Changing Your Subdomain
| What's Affected | Impact |
|---|---|
| Website URL | Changes immediately to the new subdomain |
| Old URL | May stop working (no automatic redirect) |
| Shared links | Any links with the old subdomain will break |
| Search engine rankings | Google may need time to re-index the new URL |
| Bookmarks | Readers who bookmarked the old URL will get errors |
Pro Tip: Only change your subdomain if absolutely necessary. If you have an established audience, the disruption to existing links and SEO can be significant. Consider connecting a custom domain (Business plan) instead — it's additive rather than disruptive.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Can I have multiple subdomains?
A: No. Each author profile has one subdomain. If you have multiple pen names, each would need its own BookAuth profile.
Q: Is the subdomain case-sensitive?
A: No. SarahMitchell.bookauth.com and sarahmitchell.bookauth.com point to the same website.
Q: Can I redirect my old subdomain to the new one?
A: Automatic subdomain redirects are not currently supported. Update your links manually across social media and other platforms.
Related Articles
- Connecting a Custom Domain
- Your Author Website — Overview
- Setting Up Your Profile